Automobile transmission assemblies are complex products that comprise many parts and require many hours of labor to assemble. Because they are complex products, transmission failures may be attributable to many causes. Failures may be attributable to such causes as defective parts that are installed on the transmission, parts that fail during operation of the transmission, or parts that are installed improperly during production. Because there are many possible causes of a transmission failure, diagnosing the cause of a transmission failure and repairing it can be difficult, time consuming, and labor intensive.
Transmission problems are often reported initially by customers to automobile dealers who service the vehicles they sell to their customers. Automobile manufacturers typically supply their dealers with equipment that may be used to diagnose and correct transmission problems. In some instances, when the dealer is unable to correct the problem identified by the customer, the transmission is returned to the automobile manufacturer for correction (remanufacture) or replacement. The transmissions are usually shipped to a manufacturer's production facility or area dedicated to examining and repairing faulty transmissions. Each transmission is examined and repaired at the dedicated production area. Because the examination and repair are completed at a production facility of the manufacturer, parts may be ordered and received at the transmission repair facility just as they are at the manufacturer's regular production facilities. If the transmission cannot be repaired, it is replaced. Repair and replacement transmissions are then shipped from the production facility to the automobile dealers where the installation of the transmission into the customer's automobile is completed.
For automobile manufacturers, analyzing transmission failures to determine the root causes of the failures is an important step in preventing future failures. Once the source of a failure is determined, countermeasures may be implemented to reduce or eliminate the likelihood that the same or similar failures occur in the future. For example, if the failure is the result of a part that was installed incorrectly during manufacturing, production line countermeasures may be implemented. Associates who perform the operations resulting in the incorrect part installation may be advised or retrained on the appropriate operation (e.g., a torque left operation rather than a torque right operation to install the part correctly). In addition, subsequent quality checks may be implemented to ensure the part was installed using the appropriate installation techniques (e.g., correct torque operation). If the failure is attributable to defective parts supplied by a vendor, the vendor may be contacted and asked to provide conforming parts. In some instances, the manufacturer may make arrangements to obtain the parts from a different source.
Identifying the root cause or source of a failure can be difficult and time consuming. It often requires the availability of failure data for several transmissions to identify common symptoms, faults, and problems. Even if data is available for failure analysis, the difficult and time consuming nature of determining the root cause of transmission failures means there is often a delay between the time the source of the failure is determined and appropriate information regarding the failure source is communicated to others who can implement countermeasures to reduce or eliminate future failures. For problems that are attributable to production line installation procedures, supplier parts, etc., corrective action may be taken as soon as the information is received. However, long delays in identifying the source of a failure and between the time the source of the failure is discovered and countermeasures are implemented can result in additional failures.
Currently, information regarding transmission failures is communicated long after the first transmission problem is reported and only when the source of the problem has been determined at the transmission remanufacture production facility. The limited availability of transmission failure data makes analysis and identification of the source of a problem difficult. Even if the source of the problem is discovered during the examination of the transmission at the production facility, information regarding the problem may not be reported to the regular production facility, to a supplier, etc. until a written communication is generated and the relevant information is communicated to the appropriate personnel (e.g., by telephone, by fax, etc.). Therefore, there is a need for an efficient and effective system and method for collecting, analyzing, and communicating transmission failure information to personnel who can implement countermeasures to reduce or eliminate the likelihood of future failures.